I think that Atavism's currently at a major turning point in the story. Lupus has gotten most of Skandatech killed, along with (from what I know) the entire SRS cult. He's also wiped Sigma's mind via the thralldom device. However, while he may have killed off some possible threats to his goal, Zed's betrayed him. And from what I can tell, Zed was a pretty useful guy to have around.

Zed now has Oswald, Grey, Faust, and maybe Hart on his team. And while Zed and Oswald might not be big enough players to stay alive for long, I can assume that the three mercenaries are.

On Lupus's side is Sigma, who's pretty damn powerful and probably not a coward anymore. Lupus might also have any number of flunkies at his disposal.

The only other character still ALIVE I can think of is Joanne (Leander, Fox, Hart's head voice, and any others of the like don't count) and she could go to either side, really. Though I predict it will be Zed's side so she can help them stop Sigma.

Anyhoo, the number of characters has dwindled significantly and the remainder have mostly chosen (or been forced onto) sides. This could mean Atavism is reaching it's conclusion, but could also mean that things are going to greatly change, likely for the worst as far as out "heroes" are concerned, as the plot takes a massive turn.

My prediction is that the story still has a way to go, but instead of Sigma and the like as a key plot point we're going to see a whole lot more about that portal and stuff in the future.

.........................................................THAT'S NOT THE LEANDER I KNOW!

So he like plans on destroying the human race? Man, I did not know Atavism would get to so epic a scale. I like this turn of events. Leander was always a little weird but I did not expect him to become so powerful an antagonist.

I'm guessing now that Sam is going to try and get Grey to help? Unless Grey's secretly some sort of super-being I don't think she has the power to do much about Leander, though. How will he be stopped? Will be be stopped? Or will Cope not settle with just his cast and kill off the whole world?

I wonder how Leander got this powerful? He must have been involved in some massive ooga-booga after his death.

Or maybe it was all that gay sinful dancing...

j/k

Incidentally, you broke my (and I suspect all of our) heart/s when you killed off Grey, Cope.as a fellow artiste... c... congratulations. Its impressive how we all fell for this lovely, semi-evil mercenary... and how it tugs at our heartstrings when she just so abruptly disappears.

I... actually was kinda glad she died. As a character, I liked her. As a person, she was the wost amongst the main cast. She acted cute on the surface but was downright sadistic to her victims.

I love that in a character, really. That kind of evil is fascinating to write and watch. But part of me felt relieved for the Atavism world when she bit it. Of course, the world was then beset by Leander...

I don't think Grey was that sadistic, occasionally yes, but mostly she enjoyed the killing bit, not the tormenting imo.+ she was nice to her friends.

Probably hard to redeem, but as she said to Sammy at the start: "Should I?" after Samantha pointed out the evil of their ways and that they should feel bad about it. Part of me thinks she hasn't thought through life properly, of course I'm just being naive, she's way too inquisitive with Emily's attitude to not have thought through her own.

I can't pin her down quite right. Amoral atheist? Certainly not a nietzschist despite her commonalities with that philosophy. It could be she's just blonde...No. No way.

She never stopped playing through life?

I wish I was as sympathetic with the world of Atavism as you 834n. I've thought through that argument (after poor me was hoping Grey wouldn't bite it miraculously having gone a bit too far in the dateline of the Ask a Character thread), but I simply care more for the main characters of the cast and the minor characters than I do for the rest of the world. Selfish of me really, or it would be if it was the real world.

BurntSquirrelMan wrote this lengthy bit of speculation on the tagboard. I'm posting it here for posterity.

BurntSquirrelMan wrote:Nema, I know what you mean. I have a vauge idea as to what happened though. This may take a while to explain, but I'll try my best.

First, let me explain the way the souls and afterlife work. Simply put, there isn't one. When something dies, the soul goes into the dark void and when they reach the end they cease to exist.

Lavender, somehow, I'm not sure, managed to trancend this event, and continued to exist afterwards. He caught Sam and Arther when they broke the vase thing.

The vase thing was supposed to send all in the vicinity to a man made afterlife created a long time ago. Didn't work out that way.

Now as to the reason Lavender went crazy. He had hoped that Arthur would prove him wrong. That humans could redeem themselves. That he would forgive himself and Lavender. This didn't pan out. Arthur died in a gun fight. Trying to kill. A barbarian. He did not redeem himself. He showed that man kind could not save itself. So Lavander had to save them himself.

He started to absorb all the souls into himself where they would exist as one forever. When he absorbed Sam and Arthur something happened. Some of his power was taken to make a clone soul of each that were sent to the man made afterlife. This was because they were both engulfed by the smog of the vase.

Lavender went there to re-collect them. When he collected Arthur, Arthur was in a state of rage and animalistic.

Lavander had been taking on the traits of the souls he absorbed, and himself bacame animalistic in nature.

That's what happened...I think.

EDIT:

Wallycaine wrote:I think it's pretty close to true too. One thing I didn't manage to notice until my last readthrough is that immediately after killing Grey, Leander started talking in her accent.

Wouldn't be surprised if that's supposed to be an indication that he's taking on traits of each as he absorbs them.

GoneLookingForMyself wrote:Just finished reading it the THIRD time, and finally read the comments at the end. I have to say that I understood the comic better than the comments First of all, it's Leander... not Lavender.

Secondly, I think Squirrel had some very valid points, but my impression was quite different in a couple ways. Maybe it's just 'cause I read it from the viewpoint of... well, probably a very different viewpoint. But here's my two cents on what happened *a-hem*

There may or may not be a real afterlife. I'd say YES, because Leander shows that souls are, indeed, immortal. The man-made afterlife is just that. As to what happened to Leander: On his way wherever after he died, he got snagged by a demonic force of some type. Probably one that had been hanging around him for some time, seeing as he'd been blanking out (a very common sign of demonic forces around) and hearing a voice speak about 'destined power' and the like. The demonic energy, or at least some of it, took the shape of his black suit and convinced him of his 'mission'.

IMO, it's shown that there's something 'outside' of Leander because there's not only the voice talking to him at several points, after he's dead it talks to Sam and gives her the same suit and 'mission'. So, that's my interpretation... sorry it was so long. Maybe I'm wrong, that's just how things appeared to me.